Lets talk about back pain. I have lived with back pain and back spasms for most of my life. I have caused back spasms simply by leaning over the wrong way, or picking up an adorable wiener dog. My doctor finally told me that my knees are a tid bit tooo close together. This is known as Genu valgum, but commonly called “knock–knee“. This was something I learned about myself 2 years ago. It is not severe; obviously doctors never noticed it until I was 20 years old. But it does affect how I am aligned and how I feel. I have learned to deal with this with a combination of stretches, heating pads and a lovely cocktail of muscle relaxers that help sooth the pain. I myself do not like to take muscle relaxers. I have never had a bad experience with them, but the idea of them freaks me out a little, so I do my best to avoid having to take them. I usually know if I am going to have a back spasm, they start as a twinge that usually I can catch and care for before it blows up into something much more painful. Here are my tips and tricks for avoiding back spasms and other back pain.

Tip 1: Rest. Do not over exert yourself if you know (or feel) that your back is off. It is something that you will know right away. Lay down with your feet at a 90 degree angle (prop them up on a stool, or lay on the floor and put them on a bed or chair). By doing this, you take all of the pressure off of your back and it is able to finally relax. This is by far the best thing I do when I have a back spasm.

Tip 2: Invest. Invest in a heating pad. This lovely tool will be your best friend if you have a back spasm. If you prop your feet up like I say in tip 1, place a heating pad under your lower back and let it work it’s magic. I honestly believe the combination of tip 1 & 2 have saved my back on many occasions. If you cannot rest your back and have work or class, I have used ThermaCare heat wraps in the past with success.

Tip 3: Stretch. In the early stages of a back spasm, stretching helps me quite a bit. Make sure you are very gentle and only push yourself to where you feel comfortable. Some of my favorite stretches are listed here.

Tip 4: Splurge. Last fall I suffered from a horrible back spasm. It was the worst I can remember. I hurt myself by putting oil in my car (yeah, it only takes one stupid hunch!) and then driving 40 minutes. By the time I was able to get out of the car, I could hardly walk. I could hardly move, let alone get out of a car or bed for a couple of days. Life went on though- classes were attended, and I still went to work; but I felt horrible. This back spasm just wouldn’t quit. Finally one day I finally snapped and made an appointment for a deep tissue massage. I told the therapist what my situation was and hoped for the best. It was the best decision! It was not a relaxing massage by any means. This woman was a force to be reckoned with and slapped my back into shape. This helped my back immensely and I was finally able to heal. This was a big splurge for me. As a poor college student, getting a massage isn’t something I just go do. It was the end of line for me and I knew I needed to do something to speed up my recovery.

Tip 5:Medicate: If you have a back spasm for the first time (or have them repeatedly) I recommend seeing your doctor. Even though I do not like to take medication, sometimes it is necessary. When you have severe back pain, sometimes it is impossible to sleep. Medication helps your muscles relax and makes it possible to finally rest. If you don’t want to use muscle relaxers, rotating between taking aspirin and ibuprofen helps a lot. A good nights sleep works wonders for any condition!

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor, but I have had a lot of experience with back pain. These tips and tricks are things that I have done that have worked for me in the past. If you are in severe back pain, contact your doctor. (If you feel tingling, or cannot feel your feet it is probably a spinal issue).

After the race last Sunday I had a very busy day. I rushed home, stuffed my face and took a quick shower. Then it was back in the car for my cousins Eagle scout ceremony and a family party. It was all a great time, but it didn’t leave me any time to stretch! Beginning on Monday after the race I noticed a dull pain in my back. This is not unusual for me, so I just assumed it was the onset of a backspasm or possibly even (sorry guys) just my period letting me know it was coming. Over the course of the next couple days my back pain got worse. It was a very odd pain. Very different than what I am used to having. I can walk, go upstairs, get out of bed and the car just fine. When I normally have backspasms these are things that are very difficult. After a while I started to feel the pain in my hips and radiating down my back. This made me very nervous! Did I have a pinched nerve? A slipped disc? I put off going to the doctor until yesterday (I figured putting it off over a long weekend was a bad idea).

After talking to my doctor briefly and going over what I had done over the past week he told me that my heal striking on the last downhill mile of the race and my lack of stretching had left me with a sore sacroiliac joint, leading to my hip joints and hamstrings to become very sore and developing into a one sided back spasm. So… what is your sacroiliac joint?

There are two purposes of the SI joint: shock absorption and pelvis stabilization. When we walk both SI joint pivot in the pattern of a figure eight. As our heel strikes the ground, the same side SI joint provides shock absorption for our pelvis, hip, and back. So my sprint and heal striking during the home stretch of the race left me with an irritated SI joint, which developed into something worse.

So how do I make my back pain go away? Because the lower back muscles and hamstrings connect to the pelvis and provide stabilization, I will be busy stretching and strengthening them. This has certainly been a reminder to me about how important it is to have proper form and to stretch well after a race.

Hello All! I hope all of you who celebrated Thanksgiving had a wonderful holiday! I have some new and yummy posts for the future, but lately my blog has been left on the back burner because life keeps getting in the way! Here is a quick recap of what has been happening lately.

On Thanksgiving day, at 8:30am I ran my first 5k! The race has become a popular pre-thanksgiving tradition in my town, and thousands of people were running it! It was unbelievably cold, but I am so proud of myself for doing it. I finished in 33:24, giving me an average pace of just over 11 minutes. I had never run the entire course before and was shocked to find that the hills people were warning me about were no joke! I’m just glad that the road wasn’t slippery.

after the race!

After the race I enjoyed Thanksgiving with Chris and his family. It was a wonderful time with excellent food and amazing company. I regrettably didn’t have my camera for the occasion, but believe me, everything was delicious (and delicious looking).

Yesterday on my Mom’s 48th Birthday, My Grandmother passed away. She was 87 years old. She had been struggling for a while, and was dealing with a multitude of issues. Her body was tired and couldn’t function the way it needed too. I saw her on the 26th and believe that she knew I was there. She was in so much discomfort these past few weeks, so I am happy that she is no longer in pain.

Me & My grandparents, circa 1990

In exactly one week, I will be graduating with my Bachelors degree. I am so happy that this day is FINALLY here. I am eager to walk across that stage and smile (and hopefully not trip). I have applied for graduate school, so now all I do is wait, and hopefully this spring semester I will jump right back into the college sphere and continue working towards my goal of being a Librarian.

26th birthday celebration! We went and saw Amy Schumer (it was awesome)

B – Biggest Fear: My back going out. I am very prone to back spasms and have dealt with back pain for most of my life. Whenever my back goes out I am useless for what feels like forever. I have blogged about back pain quite a bit.

C – Current Time: 9:34 AM.

D – Drink You Had Last: Water!

E – Easiest Person To Talk To: Besides Señor Sexypants (Chris), I would have to say my friend Sherry. She’s a great listener.

F – Favorite Song: I have been loving Hozier this summer. Work Song is my JAM.

G – Grossest Memory: I don’t have a really gross memory… I guess I am lucky! The last time I FELT really gross is when I had a stomach bug over Thanksgiving, it was awful.

Hello all! Over the course of this year I have been running with the goal of completing my second half marathon. Heather told me that she was planning on running the Mohawk Hudson Half Marathon, so signed up immediately.

Unfortunately this training has been filled with stupid injuries. My runners knee that sidelined me for the Disney Wine & Dine reared its ugly head early and has been persistent throughout most of my training. I also had large knots in my left thigh which led to some very confusing back pain.

All in all, it looks like I am officially an old person. I won’t be doing another half marathon in the future unless I am sure that my body is ready for it. My last long run (my 10 miler) was the best run I have had in a long time. My knee was hurting after the first mile so I looped home and put on the knee brace.

After putting the brace on my run was pretty consistent and flew by. I walked a bit in some parts but ran the majority of the run. It was the first time in two years I have run double digits! After getting home I iced my knee and dealt with a little bit of foot pain (?). I am not sure if my right foot was cramping during my run or I was running on it funny with my knee in the brace.

Regardless, it feels okay today. My knee is hurting today though…so I am hoping that icing and stretching will be enough for me to recover before the race next Sunday.

Any friends out there ever suffer from runners knee before? I would love to know what you did to make it feel better.